Velo la Shop downhill race team rider, Shawn Riel met up with Mad March Racing instructor and Marin rider Tamara Peloquin at Ray’s Indoor MTB Park in Cleveland, Ohio to kick off the new season at the park. Shawn drove down from Ottawa for his first trip to the already legendary Ray’s. Yes, Ottawa as in Canada and it’s about a 9 hour drive. However, according to Shawn it was well worth it and he’s already planning his next trip! Here’s what he had to say regarding his first impression of the park “I wasn’t sure what to expect and was blown away by the quantity of things to ride and the quality of how everything is built, as well as the diversity of riders.”
Speaking of diversity of riders, Shawn’s riding focus is downhill and he races for Marin on the Marin La Shop team out of Gatineau (Geographically Ottawa is unique because the province of Quebec borders Ottawa just on the other side of a river). The shop is actually located in Gatineau not Ottawa. He started racing for them last year after realizing that his bike frame had cracked during a practice run at a big race. Patrick Lacroix, owner of Velo la Shop as well as the Marin Race Team Manager, offered Shawn a Marin Quake (Marin’s downhill bike featuring their quad link suspension) to use for the race. Well, evidently it was meant to be as Shawn took to the bike immediately, ripped it down the course and onto the podium coming in 2nd, officially earning him a spot on the team. Shawn is really excited to be riding for the team full time next year and just as excited to be riding the new 2010 Marin Team DH (which is built on the same quad link as the Quake but it will have 220mm of rear wheel travel.
Andre Lecompte is the Marin man for the province of Quebec. Patrick mentioned the article to him and he was excited about it! When asked what he liked about the Quake, he said it was great to be able to pedal efficiently when he needed to sprint and it also handled the tight technical sections really well because of the short wheelbase.
Patrick opened up Velo la Shop last year and it is the only shop in the area to carry high-end Marin bikes. Make sure you check them out if you live nearby. When I asked Patrick why he offered Shawn a spot on the Marin DH race team here’s what he had to say – Shawn is not only a good ambassador for their shop and actively involved in supporting the cycling community, but also just as good on the trails!
All in all, it was another epic weekend at Ray’s. New friends were made, new lines and tricks were conquered. For those of you out there that haven’t been to Ray’s yet here is the last thing Shawn had to say about the park, “It deserves a spot on every mountain bikers MUST DO list!” So start planning your trip to Ray’s, the Marin Alcatraz is my preferred bike for the park, and MMR is often on-site if you want a guide or private lessons. Here are a few pictures of Shawn to wet your appetite…
